Windows 8.1 cannot boot after ubuntu install

MichaelSP

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Oct 26, 2012
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Hello,

I have an ultrabook which came pre-installed with windows 7 but, using a cheap upgrade from microsoft was quickly upgraded to Windows 8 and then on to 8.1 just recently.
I have just attempted now to install Ubuntu 13.10 alongside Windows 8.1 which all appeared to go smoothly.
However, one step in this installation resized the NTFS partition occupied by Windows 8.1 and has rendered the operating system unable to boot. Upon selecting it from the boot loader (grub2) the screen flicks black momentarily and returns immediately to the boot loader for me to select an option again.
There is also a partition for Recovery to the factory system. However, this is also unable to run due to the fact it cannot find Windows 7 anymore on the machine.

As it stands at the moment, I can boot into ubuntu and access the entire SSD and see the windows installation and folders just as they are in a full Windows installation yet it will not boot.

Thanks for any help on this one,
Michael.
 
Solution
Then you'll be needing a win8 recovery console. You can get it from another computer running win8 or it can be downloaded. It'll be rc.iso so you can put it on a bootable flash or a cd.

stillblue

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Nov 30, 2012
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Why can't it be the easy one?
OK, have you tried booting from the win8 install disk and choosing repair console, repair startup? Remember, if you do that you will lose the ubuntu loader and then you'll be needing boot-repair again.

 

MichaelSP

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Oct 26, 2012
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The system did not come with an install disc as it has no disc drive being an ultrabook. I did attempt to run the recovery partition however, that did not appear to do anything.
 

MichaelSP

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Oct 26, 2012
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I found another windows 8 disc and copied the contents to a USB and fixed it from there. Thanks for the help, I think I basically destroyed the PC and am now having to wipe and reinstall everything.

I got into the restore and ran that which apparently wiped windows 8 and then, because it didn't restore the boot-loader, that killed linux. So I had to reinstall that to select what was now wound back to windows 7 which refused to install and ....bleh. I don't even know what ended up happening.
Thank you though for trying to help and I apologize for wasting any of your time.
 

stillblue

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I'm not going to even try to figure out what you just said. :ouch:

I warned you about the boot loader being erased, you could have used boot-repair to get it back. Just for future reference. You wanted a clean system anyway, right? And it is never a waste of time, I learn more than I give here. I hearken back to my Peace Corps days many years ago, you always get more out of it than you put in.